The life-plan of my oldest daughter has changed once again and she is now aiming to be a politician. She wants it for all the right reasons; like changing the world, ending bad stuff happening to good people, making sure unpleasant people are adequately punished for their actions and so on. This new tack, however, has made me realise just how politically ill-informed her generation truly are.
As I was growing up in the eighties, comedy was highly politically-charged and it was from this comedy that as a teen I gained most of my political education. From the anti-Thatcher rants of Ben Elton, to the almost documentary aspect of Yes Minister and all between, I learned about the inner workings of government, how the parties’ beliefs differed from (or often mirrored) one another and how easy it was for someone to make a stand against a regime one did not agree with.
Sunday evenings were a particularly special time, as I was allowed up beyond my bedtime to watch the fantastic Spitting Image. This show was possibly the most influential political comedy of its time. From the stand-ups and character-based satire of the time, we were drip-fed opinion and told how we should feel about something. The creators of Spitting Image, however, were far cleverer; they almost showed us the politicians just being themselves. But for the hideous puppetry, it could almost have been the original fly-on-the-wall docusoap, thus responsible for all the mind-numbing reality TV which has followed since. Ok, a little extreme, but I am sure you get my point. The show did not make cheap tawdry insults towards its subjects, nor did it seek to belittle simply on the grounds of political leaning; all politicians were targeted in the same way, regardless of party and whilst caricature was a vital part of the puppets’ design, this was not done in a particularly insulting way. From watching this show, I learned who the key politicians of the time were, which roles they held and what the positions entailed. Without this insight, today’s youth are unable to distinguish one politician from another. Case-in-point, I asked my daughter and a couple of her friends who the Chancellor of the Exchequer was and was met with blank looks, whilst asking who presented the budget half knew the right name, the others simply thought it was the Prime Minister.
In thinking about this a while ago, I desperately wanted the show to return. I felt it was so important to my own education that I could not bear the fact that my own children do not have this source. I realised, though, on listening to an interview with Armando Iannucci that it would never work. (I would link to it, because it is relevant to this topic, but unfortunately was on the BBC I-player, so is no longer available) He pointed out that the type of comedy that stemmed from the political situation in the eighties could never exist nowadays because of the lack of political personality. I hadn’t realised before (well, hadn’t thought about it too much, really!) but for the main, today’s government are career politicians, those who have been almost bred especially for the purpose. They do not have opinions of their own, merely ingrained party policies shared by every other member; they do not have quirks or idiosyncrasies, as they are considered a weakness; they do not say anything which has not been written by a team of nine and proof-read by fifteen for fear that something could be taken out of context or might represent another u-turn. Gone are the free-thinking, spirited politicians who can address an issue with the benefit of hindsight and experience, replaced by kids fresh out of university who have been shaped by their junior-party, moulded into the perfect little bundle to spout the same drivel as their predecessors. Time was that the right person leading a party really could change the world, but I have to wonder nowadays if it really matters any more.
So what of the future? Who will be the politicians of tomorrow?
In spite of government claims to the contrary, they will continue to be predominantly from the upper classes, as the lower classes feel for the most part that politics is wholly irrelevant to their own lives. Voter apathy is higher in lower-class areas for this very reason. The masses believe it doesn’t matter who is in power as all parties will screw you over in the end, so don’t think it worth the effort of voting. These people are not going to be looking to a career in politics as they feel that one person can no longer make a difference.
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